Bradley Manning and The US War on Whistleblowers (Alexa O'Brien interview)

Media

Now that Bradley Manning has admitted to giving classified documents to WikiLeak, the government insists his crimes are tantamount to support for al-Qaida and international terrorism. These leaks, I would like to suggest, are analogous to somebody violating a jaywalking law in an attempt to save a pedestrian from on oncoming Mac truck. Joining me today by phone from New York to discuss the wide area in between those two extremes is Alexa O'Brien. Alexa is a journalist, researcher, and social activist. She is a co-plaintiff, along with Christopher Hedges in the NDAA suit against the Obama administration trying to overturn the National Defense Authorization act, which states that US citizens can be indefinitely detained without charge or trial. She is currently investigating the Bradley Manning trial and the US government's pursuit of WikiLeaks. And if you have read the 10,00 word plus transcript of Bradley Manning's statement to the court last week, you have Alexa to thank because she is the journalist who transcribed it.

This piece was reprinted by Truthout with permission or license. It may not be reproduced in any form without permission or license from the source.

Bradley Manning and The US War on Whistleblowers (Alexa O'Brien interview)

Media

Now that Bradley Manning has admitted to giving classified documents to WikiLeak, the government insists his crimes are tantamount to support for al-Qaida and international terrorism. These leaks, I would like to suggest, are analogous to somebody violating a jaywalking law in an attempt to save a pedestrian from on oncoming Mac truck. Joining me today by phone from New York to discuss the wide area in between those two extremes is Alexa O'Brien. Alexa is a journalist, researcher, and social activist. She is a co-plaintiff, along with Christopher Hedges in the NDAA suit against the Obama administration trying to overturn the National Defense Authorization act, which states that US citizens can be indefinitely detained without charge or trial. She is currently investigating the Bradley Manning trial and the US government's pursuit of WikiLeaks. And if you have read the 10,00 word plus transcript of Bradley Manning's statement to the court last week, you have Alexa to thank because she is the journalist who transcribed it.

This piece was reprinted by Truthout with permission or license. It may not be reproduced in any form without permission or license from the source.